I went with the Allagash Curieux and Ommegang Rare Vos. The latter seemed especially delicious.

I've never gotten a growler of anything, so I'm just curious. What's the appeal of a growler shop? I can see why breweries would sell growlers of their beers on site, especially if they didn't have a wide distribution range, but are there reasons to favor growlers over bottles when both are available?

Had Founders Dry Hopped Pale Ale tonight. Very good, but probably my least favorite of their offerings so far.

Also had my first Delirium Tremens last night. I have no idea how I went this long without having one, but...it was very good. I've heard that it's sort of become the Guinness of the Belgians, but I liked it.

Decided that this weekend, I was going to treat myself to a nice reward.

Went to LI's best "Bottle shop". Great selection. Spent $60 on a four pack of Great Divides Yeti Imperial Stout, a six of Founders Centennial IPA, and two Growlers of Great Divides Yeti Chocolate Oak Aged and Espresso.

A neighbor who drinks Sam Adams Cherry Wheat came over and we shared a couple of Rocky Patel 1990 cigars while listening to the Allman Bros live at the Fillmore.

ExPatriatePen wrote:So... I've had a pretty stressful couple of weeks.

Decided that this weekend, I was going to treat myself to a nice reward.

Went to LI's best "Bottle shop". Great selection. Spent $60 on a four pack of Great Divides Yeti Imperial Stout, a six of Founders Centennial IPA, and two Growlers of Great Divides Yeti Chocolate Oak Aged and Espresso.

A neighbor who drinks Sam Adams Cherry Wheat came over and we shared a couple of Rocky Patel 1990 cigars while listening to the Allman Bros live at the Fillmore.

ExPatriatePen wrote:So... I've had a pretty stressful couple of weeks.

Decided that this weekend, I was going to treat myself to a nice reward.

Went to LI's best "Bottle shop". Great selection. Spent $60 on a four pack of Great Divides Yeti Imperial Stout, a six of Founders Centennial IPA, and two Growlers of Great Divides Yeti Chocolate Oak Aged and Espresso.

A neighbor who drinks Sam Adams Cherry Wheat came over and we shared a couple of Rocky Patel 1990 cigars while listening to the Allman Bros live at the Fillmore.

Had a few hours of down time from last week's work schedule to wander through the wonderful Sonoma County area, and ended up in Petaluma at Lagunitas Brewing. I was totally amazed at how large of a brewery they are and how much land it occupies. In the tasting room, I sampled 4 taster's that included: IPA, unfiltered Pils, Farmhouse Ale and Rye Cappuccino Stout aged in bourbon barrels. The Stout was amazing in flavor, but available only as a Growler fill, so I grabbed a pint.

If not for the drive to the bay, the free brewery tour would have been on the list. The chance to sample as you watch the beer being brewed makes for a great day.

With the hot weather, calling for refreshing beers, I bought a case each of Penn Weizen and Penn Kaiser Pils. Both are solid representatives of their respective styles. In particular, while the Kaiser isn’t hoppy compared to, say, an IPA, it’s nicely hoppy for a Pils, and the noble hops are well balanced.

Has anyone had Penn’s Cool River Kölsch? I might pick up some of that too.